T1’s run at the League of Legends MSI 2026 has come to a premature end. Following a 3-1 loss to G2 Esports, the legendary organization saw its streak of reaching the final four at international events snapped, marking a disappointing exit on their home soil in South Korea.

Head coach Im “Tom” Jae-hyeon didn’t mince words when discussing the series. In a post-match assessment, he pointed to a lack of team-wide coordination as a primary factor. “Overall, there were a lot of moments where we weren’t on the same page,” Tom said. He noted that in the final game of the series, the team pushed too hard in key moments, allowing their advantage to slip away.

Top Lane Draft Struggles

A major narrative of the series was G2’s effective use of the draft, particularly regarding top laner BrokenBlade. According to Tom, G2 prioritized securing counterpicks, which often left T1's top laner, Doran, in difficult positions.

“It’s true that G2 really likes having counterpick,” Tom explained. “When we were on first pick, our plan was to secure something strong... and construct drafts where top could at least play a 40-60 matchup.” While that was the intention, the reality on stage proved more volatile. The Yorick versus Cho’Gath matchup unraveled after an early incident around the Void Grubs, and the Gnar versus Yasuo matchup in Game 3 did not play out as the T1 coaching staff had hoped.

Tom added that while the staff anticipated BrokenBlade’s Yasuo as a comfort counterpick, the team was less prepared to deal with G2's Kled pick.

Praise for Peyz and Looking Ahead

Despite the early exit, Tom offered significant praise for Peyz, who he noted performed exceptionally well regardless of the champion or playstyle. Whether T1 opted for non-traditional ADC picks in the first two games or standard marksmen in the latter half of the series, Tom described Peyz as “talented, smart, and very skilled.”

The coach also touched on the toll of the tournament schedule. Starting in the Play-In Stage left little recovery time between matches, though he identified an earlier loss to BLG as the real turning point, as it forced T1 into a more grueling path through the bracket.

“I didn’t expect us to be eliminated this early, at least by our standards,” Tom said. “I feel nothing but sorry.” With the MSI campaign finished, the organization is looking to move past this performance, with training for the Esports World Cup scheduled to begin immediately.